


futile devices

by cabriesun



Series: i told you things about me [1]
Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Co-workers, Established Levi/Erwin Smith, Established Relationship, Fluff, Late Night Conversations, Late at Night, M/M, Overnight Shifts, POV Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin), Secret Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-15
Updated: 2019-03-15
Packaged: 2019-11-14 04:38:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,584
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18045635
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cabriesun/pseuds/cabriesun
Summary: [eruri university au]overnight shifts suck.erwin spends the time reminding levi, in a rare moment of doubt, that he’s just as human as everyone else and maybe—just maybe—they suck a little less afterward.





	futile devices

**Author's Note:**

> this is new....  
> for me, at least.
> 
> so i have this au i wanna make, and i have all these ideas, but no time to make a full fleshed plot with chaptered updates and all that madness. sooooo, i decided to make a series instead and hope to god it works out.
> 
> there isn't really a timeline as of right now for this au, just a collection of little moments and highlights of their relationship. it'll develop as i keep writing it, and eventually i'll add some form of a timeline in the descriptions and series notes, but please keep in mind this is utterly for fun and to explore some soft eruri stuff i've wanted to write for _ages..._
> 
> i hope you all enjoy this ;-;

“You can’t sign her in.”

The faces before him fall, but Levi’s remains still as ever. His hands toy with the residents’ cards idly, sliding them between his fingertips.

It was supposed to be a quiet night. Wednesdays were supposed to be the calm before the weekend storms of parties and drunkards. And yet it’s as if the universe knew that Levi would be working the 2:00 AM to 6:00 AM shift and decided to give him the worst possible residents to attend to: the ones that challenge literally _every_ rule the dormitory has. His brutal headache spreading like a damn tumor, and Levi is just about ready to unleash his fury on the boy trying to argue with him at 3:40 in the morning.

“Why not?” Tristan Reyes, according to his card, leans over the counter to gage his attention. Levi doesn’t budge, his gaze rested on the screen that blinked before him. He never had a tendency to look at residents in the eye. Especially when they press and pry and irritate him just like Tristan is.

“She’s been signed into the building for three consecutive nights,” Levi explains. “After three nights, the system locks the guest out and doesn’t allow them to be signed into the building.”  
  
“Can you sign her in for a day pass? It’s past 11:50 anyway.”

“Day passes are only distributed between eight in the morning and ten at night.”

Tristan snorts. “That’s bullshit.”

“I can’t sign her into the building.”  
  
“Whatever man.” He snatches the duffle bag belonging to the girl that Levi can only assume is his girlfriend before stalking away, “Thanks for nothing.”  
  
“Take it up with reslife!” Levi shouts, foregoing his volume. His coworker Petra turns to glance at him, lips turned into a disapproving frown. Of all the people to work with, Petra isn’t the worst. But that’s coming from someone who doesn’t like working with anyone. Their staff consists of many personalities, some as different as the sun and the moon. Too many for Levi to click with, frankly. Petra is one of the more focused and muted members of the bunch, so naturally (besides Hange), he found himself in her orbit. But despite her positive attributes, no person is perfect and her flaw is beyond the worst that Levi could ever imagine: She cares about her job.

“You can’t talk to them like that,” she chastises him like she always does when his voice raises in the slightest while talking to residents. “It’s not part of our values.”

“I don’t care who you are; respect is a bare minimum and not that hard.”

“Says you.”

He huffs and Petra sighs, knowing when to throw the towel in before she’s on Levi’s bad side.

“Thank god Erwin works the next shift with you.” She grumbles it and Levi tenses. “He’s the only one that could possibly tame you.”

He recenters just enough to throw a terse remark back.

“My mood will change the moment the people that live here learn how to respect others. They barely respect _themselves._ ”

“You don’t know that, Levi,” Perta swivels in her chair to face him fully. Her hair frames her angered features, her chopped locks not as ginger and bright as they are in the daytime. The lights are dimmed just enough so their textbooks are legible, and the night pools in the building from their wide windows. Everyone looks and feels just a bit darker during their overnights, Levi thinks. And it isn’t just the lack of light.

“You wanna know something?”

Right, Petra. She’s still facing him, arms crossed tight across her small chest.

“Sure.”

“I think I’ve figured you out.”

It takes a lot for Levi not to laugh right after the words leave her mouth. She seems certain, but it wouldn’t have been the first time Levi has heard that claim.

“How?”  
  
“I’m pretty sure you’ve just narrowed your mind so far that you have the incapability of making a single friend let alone _acquaintance_ on staff other than your RA.”

So much for liking her.

“Hm.”

The clock strikes 3:50, and Petra turns back to her computer screen to turn in the log for their shift. Levi shifts his chair back to its original position as well, avoiding her completely after her sudden outburst. He’s not phased; it’s nothing that he’s heard before, but there’s something different this time.

His RA, Erwin Smith, albeit him being _plenty_ more than a friend, happens to be the only person he’s close to. Petra’s right; there’s a reason why none of the new people he’s met have taken quite the same liking to him that Erwin has. But it makes Levi wonder why it played out that way in the first place. Not that he minds...he thinks.

Erwin comes late; at 3:53, to be exact. He tosses them both a sheepish smile, blaming his tardiness on sleeping through his alarm. Despite that, he looks more awake than ever. His eyes are wide and sparkling when he nods at an unsuspecting Levi. The blush spreads far past his cheeks, so bad he has to cover his mouth up.

Petra returns the smile, her expression much warmer than the ice Levi had just been dished. Erwin has that effect on people. He’s the sun that never stops shining. And Levi? His polar opposite in every way possible.

“See you Petra.” Erwin says goodbye on behalf of them both, Levi’s eyes pinned on her back until she disappears into the elevator. A few moments later, one of Erwin’s resident’s—Levi’s neighbor Mike or, Max or something—enters through the locked double doors, stealing his attention before Levi can even try.

 _So much for that_.

They wrap themselves up in an intense conversation from the get-go, leaving Levi to sway between wanting to talk about the words he just exchanged with Petra and the confusion that followed, and simply bottling it up for another day. He chews on his bottom lip, glaring at the back of his head before finally opting to turn around and just _wait_.

Erwin glances at him every few or so moments during his conversation, his attention floating between two people who seemed to desperately need his attention. One blatant and the other, not so much. Levi manages to keep himself occupied, logging into his grading portal and scrolling through the assignments he’s going to have to get done when he wakes up the next morning. It was probably not the best idea to schedule a two to six on the day he has classes four hours afterward, but he’s never been the best at scheduling himself. He can hear Hange scolding him in the back of his head, so loud…so shrill…

He grimaces at just the right time, Erwin’s gaze turned from Max (or Mike?)—who chooses now to stare down at his phone—and directly on Levi. They maintain solid eye contact for a moment, but Levi isn’t budging. Not yet. Not when he doesn’t have the support of his words. Erwin notices soon enough, clutching the chair handle and turning back to the boy in front of the desk.

“Hey so,” Erwin motions to the computer in front of him with an awkward smile, “I’ve got a lot of work to do. If anything else happens you can let me know, yeah?”

“Sure! Can I email you?”

“Ah, texting would be easier, yeah?”

He nods and waves, wishing Erwin a good night before disappearing into the elevator a moment later. When they’re finally alone, Levi has to swallow his urges for only a while longer. It’s their rule; three minutes guarantees that they’re truly alone.

Before the time passes, a few groups of party-goers pass through, to Levi’s surprise (it _was_ Wednesday yesterday, right?), but Erwin swipes them without blinking. He smiles at the girls who slide in the flirtatious comments that Levi has been forced to get used to, averts his eyes from the drunkenness he knows he’s meant to report. Levi opts to keep his mouth shut this time around, no longer in the mood to be drilling people for their wrongdoings. It’s the dawn of their four to six, and the poor boy is already shutting down.

But they disappear just like the rest, clamoring all the way up to their rooms on the seventh floor of the building. They’re loud enough to wake an entire floor, but neither of them speak up. That is, not until the silence resumes.

“You okay?” His voice chimes from the other side of the desk.

“Fine,” Levi hums, still not sure how to bring up the heaviness in his chest.

“You sure?”

Levi doesn’t answer, and Erwin takes the silence as answer enough for him to scoot over to where he sits. As he’s still refusing to acknowledge Erwin in full, the latter decides to

“Levi.”

Levi jumps when he feels the sudden heat of Erwin’s hand on his thigh. It feels like it’s been a decade since they’re shared a touch so intimate, and it shows in the way Levi struggles to keep his composure when Erwin’s hand begins to rub up his leg. “You can tell me.”

 _Fuck_ . His composure was never that strong to begin with anyway, but Erwin always had his _ways_. So minuscule but so tempting. Maybe that’s what Petra was talking about when she singled Erwin out, but then again it’s not like she’s in on their secret. She doesn’t know what they know.

“Petra asked me if I have the capability of having friends today.” Levi focuses on a bag of baked chips in the vending machine that sits across from him. He feels the shift of Erwin’s chair as Levi gently moves his thigh from his palm. “She wasn’t being all that serious I know that. I do have Hange, after all. Nut sometimes I wonder what it would be like if I was as loosely strung as…well…”

“Me?” Erwin guesses. Levi nods.

“Like you.”

Erwin taps his foot on the hardwood, fingers drumming the same dance. “We probably wouldn’t have met, considering I’ve come to enjoy your stubbornness.”

“You seem to be the only one.”  
  
“I’m perfectly alright with that.”

Levi huffs, naturally amused with how quick Erwin seemed to be with his words, even more so when it came to simple flattery. Nothing but the best for those in his circles, Levi supposes. His gaze floats from the vending machine to where Erwin is slipping his hand underneath his.

“We need to be more careful,” Levi whispers, taking his careful glances but squeezing lightly regardless.

Caution is permissible fear,” Erwin whispers back with earnest, “I want to hold your hand, Levi.”

It was hard to deny Erwin when he got like this; a bit bolder than he usually is in the daytime, scholarly image thrown out the window.

“Do you remember when you caught me staring at you earlier while you were unlocking the pool sticks for that group of freshman you don’t like?” He asks Levi, whose brows raise in curiosity.  
  
“You’re going to have to be more specific; I hate a lot of freshmen.”  
  
“ _Levi._ ”

He smiles a bit, wraps his index finger about Erwin’s. “Yes, I remember.”

“It’s so weird, but I swear you look beautiful when you’re irritated.”

“That’s new, but it doesn’t surprise me coming from you.” Levi twines their middle fingers next.

“It’s just…”

“You can say it.”

“I know I can.”

“Then what’s taking you so long?”

Erwin looks at him impatiently and Levi shrugs. If he had the opportunity he would probably say something more, but Erwin’s free hand clutches onto his chin before guiding him close.

“Wait—“ Levi tries to stop his, gripping his wrist.

“Yeah?” Erwin’s close in moments and the sudden breath of fresh air that follows has Levi dizzy. He knows exactly what Erwin wants. He barely nods before Erwin is kissing him, the hold on his wrist weakening.

They shouldn’t be doing this so publicly, not when a resident could walk in at any moment. But he doesn’t stop him. He never does. The invasive scent of expensive laundry detergent and cinnamon has slowly but surely morphed itself into his home. And before he met Erwin, Levi never really had a home.

But, he tastes the faint hint of cherry chapstick on his lips before pulling away and wiping his mouth. Erwin chuckles when he makes up his face, resting his chin on his palm.

“You know I hate that shit,” he huffs, brows furrowed as he focuses on getting rid of the sweet taste.

“You know I’m not gonna stop wearing it just because you don’t like it.” Erwin sits back, pleased, “it keeps my lips soft. And I _know_ you like that.”

“Yeah yeah…” Levi murmurs. He’s still holding onto his hand, even tighter than before.

“Since when do you care about what other people say anyway?” Erwin inquires, causing Levi’s blush to merely darken.

“I-I _don’t_. But shit like that doesn’t make sense to me,” he explains, “why do I need to be capable of making friends? Who cares about any of that?”

“You’re right,” Erwin hums, turning their hands over.

“It’s ridiculous,” Levi continues, “if I want you to be my only friend, do I really have to be _capable_ of making friends?”

“You don’t,” he smirks now, “but don’t forget Hange.”

Levi sighs before glancing between him and the vending machine again. He feels a bit torn open, telling Erwin about all of this before he’s even had a chance to fully internalize it.

“Levi,”

The younger of them tilts his head back in Erwin’s direction.

“I’m fine with you being my only friend, too.”

Levi doesn’t fight his blush this time, sitting up from the chair to give Erwin another kiss. Erwin stays seated where he is, guiding the latter closer with the palm of his hand that pushes against his back. Levi makes sure to pull back when he feels himself getting too carried away. His poor heart races at an inhuman rate when he’s kissing Erwin, and nothing will stop him from crawling into his lap in the middle of the desk if it gets past a certain point.

Erwin looks disappointed at the loss of touch but retracts quickly at the sound of the outer door unlocking. He rolls his chair over to the computer on the other side of the desk. Levi’s soul practically left his body at the sound, but it seemed that the freshman didn’t care to give them a second glance.

“Welcome back to Maria Hall,” Erwin says. He still smiles as if he’s greeting a guest at two in the afternoon and Levi’s heart swells. Erwin is better than him in so many ways. Strange enough, Levi didn’t strive to be the same, but he admires it. Even when they first met and the sight of him made his stomach crawl with anger, he still admired it in his own way.

The resident walks up without another word and Levi makes his way over to him again, resting his hand on his shoulder.

“Thanks.” He says, and Erwin swivels his chair around.

“For the advice? No problem.”

“No no,” Levi shakes his head, “for listening. Thank you for listening.”

Erwin’s eyes shine with something that Levi can’t place. That is until he feels the press of Erwin’s mouth against his knuckles.

“Of course, Levi.”

**Author's Note:**

> heyo :) i hope you enjoyed and come back for more,,, this fic had a special place in my heart.  
> follow me on [tumblr](https://cabriesun.tumblr.com/) and [twitter](https://twitter.com/cabriesunz) for more attack on titan content!


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